Focus on Growth: Sage Insights

What does Gen Z need from leaders to do their best work? Tom Doorley sits down with Mollie McGrady Bennigson, a Gen Z strategy consultant at Deloitte, to talk about leading Gen Z employees, building a career in the age of AI, and how senior leaders can develop the next generation of talent.Mollie studied chemical engineering at UT Austin and joined Deloitte in early 2024, just before generative AI tools reached the firm. She learned the fundamentals of consulting by hand, then became one of the firm’s top ChatGPT users. Now she mentors analysts who have never worked without AI, and she sees both sides clearly: AI makes teams faster and leaner, but someone still has to know what good looks like.In this episode:• Why Gen Z sees constant change as normal, not intimidatingUsing AI as an “analyst” and where human judgment still matters• Teaching junior consultants to turn raw AI output into client-ready work• What the best leaders do: look past job titles and give early-career people a seat at the table• Why so many young professionals build the work but never get to present it• How Mollie uses AI to rehearse and get feedback before big presentations• Rapid prototyping, teaching executives AI, and where her career goes nextFor senior leaders, these are practical questions. Understanding what motivates the next generation is essential to delivering results today and developing the leaders we will need tomorrow. We can’t wait until Gen Z is ready to take the mantle of leadership. Preparing them starts with how we lead them today.Book mentioned: Assembling Tomorrow: A Guide to Designing a Thriving Future from the Stanford d.school by Scott Doorley and Carissa Carter: https://link.amazon/B0d35jko2 Navigating The Fog of Change™ is presented by Sage Partners. This podcast is hosted by Tom Doorley and edited and produced by Rei Haycraft.To learn more about Sage Partners, visit: https://www.sagepartners.net#GenZ #Leadership #FutureOfWork

We are living through a turbulent time—so chaotic that we call this period the Fog of Change—competing, polarizing voices that constrain progress.We step into this breach with my conversation with Jeremy Engels, Penn State professor of communication and a scholar of the Declaration of Independence.He gives us a framework to shift the dialogue from contention to understanding. He teaches these concepts to Gen-Z students. We should all take note and follow these principles. It is our responsibility to find the path forward. We can’t do so until we reframe our dialogue.Jeremy's book, "On Mindful Democracy: A Declaration of Interdependence to Mend a Fractured World," is available on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4gRoyI6To learn more about Jeremy and his work, visit: https://jeremydavidengels.com Navigating The Fog of Change™ is presented by Sage Partners. This podcast is hosted by Tom Doorley and edited and produced by Rei Haycraft.To learn more about Sage Partners, visit: https://www.sagepartners.net/

The future isn’t something that simply happens to us—it is something we can help create.In this episode, Rick Williams, author of Create the Future, shares a practical playbook for leading through disruption and uncertainty. Together, we explore how his framework aligns with the principles of Navigating the Fog of Change™ and what it means for today’s leaders.

Using lessons from our own careers and life experiences, we discuss how leaders can move from reacting to change to shaping what comes next.If you’re determined to lead with confidence in uncertain times, this conversation is for you.Rick Williams is based in Boston, Massachusetts. He is a Harvard Business School graduate and a physics graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.Rick brings a unique combination of professional and life experiences to his work with leaders who want their organizations to be successful and want to be more successful leaders themselves. Rick brings a clarity of purpose, realistic options, meaningful context, risk assessment, and a view from off the boat. He helps clarify the issues to be addressed, define the decisions to be made, create realistic options, and evaluate the execution risks. He communicates clearly in both public and private settings and encourages others to discover, for themselves, their best path forward.To learn more about Rick, visit: https://rickwilliamsleadership.comNavigating The Fog of Change™ is presented by Sage Partners. This podcast is hosted by Tom Doorley and edited and produced by Rei Haycraft.To learn more about Sage Partners, visit: https://www.sagepartners.net/

MedTech: Navigating the Fog of Change™

Few industries are experiencing more rapid and consequential change than healthcare. Advances in AI, robotics, diagnostics, personalized medicine, regulation, and reimbursement are reshaping the MedTech landscape at unprecedented speed.

In this episode of Navigating the Fog of Change™, we explore how MedTech leaders can thrive in this environment rather than simply react to it.

My guests are Glenn Snyder, founder and former leader of Deloitte Consulting’s MedTech practice and a board member of LarmorBio, and Bernie Haffey, who led NCO Surgical, IntraLase, and Summit through successful exits exceeding $1 billion and now serves on the boards of Medevise and On Target Laboratories. Together, they are partners at HSMG Advisors.

Our conversation focuses on two critical leadership challenges:

• How AI is becoming a powerful accelerator of MedTech innovation.

• How boards can create greater value by providing insight—not just oversight as companies navigate continuous change.

• The lessons extend well beyond healthcare. They offer a roadmap for every leader seeking to navigate today’s Fog of Change.

Navigating The Fog of Change™ is presented by Sage Partners. This podcast is hosted by Tom Doorley and edited and produced by Rei Haycraft.To learn more about Sage Partners, visit: https://www.sagepartners.net/

Your Board Should Be an Asset In today’s environment of massive, fast, and continuous change, boards can no longer be satisfied operating in its traditional role. Oversight remains essential—but it is no longer enough.In this episode, I sit down with former AT&T CEO John Donovan, who now serves on the boards of Palo Alto Networks, Lockheed Martin, and U.S. Steel. Drawing on his unique perspective as both a CEO and board director, John explains how the best boards are shifting from compliance and monitoring to helping management see around corners.We discuss why today’s directors must provide Insight—not just Oversight by bringing informed perspectives on strategy, technology, cyber risk, AI, geopolitics, and the forces reshaping every industry. John shares practical advice on how boards can challenge management constructively, ask better questions, and become true strategic partners while maintaining their governance responsibilities.Your board is navigating today’s Fog of Change™. This conversation offers a powerful blueprint for becoming more informed, more engaged, and more valuable.Because in the fog, great boards don’t just oversee—they provide insight.Navigating The Fog of Change™ is presented by Sage Partners. This podcast is hosted by Tom Doorley and edited and produced by Rei Haycraft.To learn more about Sage Partners, visit: https://www.sagepartners.net/

Over the past year, we have explored the reality that leaders face today:• Change is massive, rapid, and permanent.• Traditional strategic planning models no longer work.• Leaders need a Change Agenda to provide direction when certainty is impossible.But understanding the challenge is only the beginning.To lead successful change, leaders must:• Make the Case for "Why"—and "Why Now"• Assess whether the organization is truly ready for changeThese are heavy lifts. Without urgency and readiness, even the best strategies fail.To explore these critical leadership challenges, I am joined by Alex “Pete” Hart, former CEO and later Chair of Mastercard International and former Chair of Silicon Valley Bank. Drawing upon decades of leadership experience, Pete and I identify the next steps leaders must take to move our organizations forward.Because in the midst of the Chaos, we must continue to press forward—and help others see through the fog.Navigating The Fog of Change™ is presented by Sage Partners. This podcast is hosted by Tom Doorley and edited and produced by Rei Haycraft.To learn more about Sage Partners, visit: https://www.sagepartners.net/

To face off against the powerful forces of change pummeling us all, ask yourself this question: Do you have your enterprise ready for change? Really?If so, don’t waste your time on this podcast. But if not, and in our experience, most of you are not, then:You need this. Really!Sage Partner John Hansen and I describe the process you’ll need to ensure your enterprise can handle the stress of change.Navigating The Fog of Change™ is presented by Sage Partners. This podcast is hosted by Tom Doorley and edited and produced by Rei Haycraft.To learn more about Sage Partners, visit: https://www.sagepartners.net/

Most leaders hesitate in uncertainty. The winners act.

For the third year, Barry Winer, Deloitte’s Head of M&A Research, joins me to explore how disruption in M&A is creating real opportunity—for those prepared to move.

Drawing on Deloitte Consulting’s deep experience and Sage Partners’ perspective, we cut through the fog to show how leaders can identify, evaluate, and execute deals in uncertain times.

The takeaway: Done wisely, M&A—across both large and small transactions—remains one of the most powerful engines of value-creating growth.

In the Fog of Change™, winners don’t wait for clarity. They move before others do.

To learn more about Barry and his work, visit:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/barrywiner

Navigating The Fog of Change™ is presented by Sage Partners. This podcast is hosted by Tom Doorley and edited and produced by Rei Haycraft.

To connect with Tom, visit: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomdoorleyhttps://www.sagepartners.net/thomas-doorleyTo learn more about Sage Partners, visit: https://www.sagepartners.net/

In times of massive, fast-moving change, leaders are expected to provide direction—but the old model of fixed plans no longer works.In the fog, certainty is elusive. What matters most is not just about being right—it’s more about being ready.In this episode, I’m joined by Sage Partner Larry Bennigson to explore how leaders can create a Change Agenda—a clear, adaptable framework that sets direction, builds alignment, and signals the need to learn and adjust in real time.This is how leaders steady their organizations when the path ahead is unclear.Watch now to learn how to lead when you can’t see the road ahead.Navigating The Fog of Change™ is presented by Sage Partners. This podcast is hosted by Tom Doorley and edited and produced by Rei Haycraft.To learn more about Sage Partners, visit: https://www.sagepartners.net/

After a year of exploring the turbulence reshaping our world — technological disruption, geopolitical instability, cultural shifts and economic uncertainty — we believe it’s time to move  to action in new deliberative ways.

In this pivotal episode of Navigating the Fog of Change™, I’m joined by three of my Sage Partners to introduce a practical approach for leading through chaos.

Drawing on our decades of experience at the front lines of strategy, leadership, culture, and governance, we outline four essential initiatives to help leaders cut through confusion, align their organizations, and move forward with clarity and confidence.

This episode sets the foundation.

In the weeks ahead, we’ll take a series of deep dives into each initiative — translating insight into execution.If you’ve been asking, “What do we actually do now?” — this is where we begin.

Thank you to our guests, Larry Bennigson, John Hansen, and Robert Kueppers. To learn more about them and connect, visit:

Larry Bennigson

https://www.linkedin.com/in/larrybennigson/

John Hansen

https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-l-hansen-200b5/

Robert Kueppers

https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-j-kueppers-1218a228/

Navigating The Fog of Change™ is presented by Sage Partners. This podcast is hosted by Tom Doorley and edited and produced by Rei Haycraft.To learn more about Sage Partners, visit: https://www.sagepartners.net/